Ireland may have won their opening two Six Nations matches in style but skipper Brian O'Driscoll says he is not writing off France.
"I suppose it is in the Irish mentality to get carried away, we have won two matches and all of a sudden we are supposed to be world-beaters," the Ireland and Lions centre told the BBC Sport online today.
"However, the players will keep their feet on the ground, I know that for sure. France are the Grand Slam champions, let's not forget that."
But he agrees playing at Lansdowne Road is a definite advantage.
"Sometimes the crowd can be like a 16th man," he said.
"But one thing which has annoyed me is that some people in Dublin seem to be getting carried away and are talking about how many Ireland are going to win by, not will Ireland win?
"We have watched tapes of the matches the French have played so far. They are a typical French flair side and they can change their game when the situation requires it."
France lost at Twickenham, despite outscoring England three tries to one, and then beat Scotland easily. Ireland have shrugged off a spate of injuries to score emphatic away wins over Scotland and Italy.
And O'Driscoll wonders whether French rookie Dimitri Yachvili might find it hard to step into injured scrum-half Fabien Galthie's shoes.
"They are sure to miss Fabien Galthie, he is a big loss for them. But one person does not make a team and I believe they have great strength throughout their side," he said.
"France may not be in as good form as they were last year but they are capable of turning it on when they want."
And he admits Ireland were guilty of few handling errors against Italy.
"We were a bit sloppy in Rome. It is a matter of concentration and getting the head right for the next game," he said.
He believes Ireland were fortunate to have two outstanding fly-halves to choose from in David Humphreys and Ronan O'Gara.
Humphreys kept his place in the side for Saturday even though first-choice O'Gara has recovered from injury.
"David got his chance and has played well," O'Driscoll said.
"But it is a great position to be in, to have two excellent players challenging for that flyhalf position. They bring the best out of each other and that can only be good for the team."
AFP